


lost and found, city bound, in my dreams

by MichaelKyan



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Anxiety, Asexual Character, Depression, Multi, Nonbinary Character, Queer Themes, Queerplatonic Relationships, Trans Character, Trans Female Character, Travel, agender!Jon, trans!Meg
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-01
Updated: 2016-06-04
Packaged: 2018-06-05 16:56:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6713269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MichaelKyan/pseuds/MichaelKyan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ryan Haywood would much rather spend his Friday nights curled up in bed, but Meg Turney has a travel itch that can only be solved with frequent trips anywhere she could afford. So one night, after being dragged out of his dorm by Meg, the two of them meet Jon Risinger, another college student, and start the next journey of their lives.</p><p>*For the Monty Oum Project fanfic exchange</p><p>This project is on indefinite hiatus</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. a moment you'll never remember and a night you'll never forget

**Author's Note:**

> I participated in the Monty Oum Project's fanfiction writing project. My prompt, given to me in the beginning of March, was...
> 
> "Lost and Found. Any character, RWBY, RvB, or RPF."
> 
> Story title - Are We the Waiting by Green Day  
> also the summary is shit sorry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title - Hallelujah by Panic! at the Disco

“When was the last time you went out, and not to get food, to go to class, or to see me?”

Ryan Haywood rolled over to see his best friend, Meg Turney, with her hands on her hips. He smirked and covered himself once again with his quilt.

“Wouldn’t you like to know.”

“Ugh! You’re impossible!” she cried, throwing her hands up in the air. Ryan and Meg were in Ryan’s college dorm room, just two doors down from Meg’s. Meg walked over to pull the blinds up to let some sunlight into the otherwise desolate, dark room.

“Meg, what do you expect from me?” Ryan posed. “I go to class, I eat a decent enough meal at least twice a day, and I come back to bed. I watch Netflix, too, you cannot forget that,” he said, squinting at the sudden brightness of the sun.

“But this is college, Ryan! College! It’s supposed to be the best four years of our lives!”

“And I’m loving each season of a new show I watch?”

“This is the chance to travel the world! See shit!”

“Did you actually see what Netflix added this month?”

“With people you care about!”

“Meg, we’re very different people. Despite my major of choice, I prefer being on my own.”

“Yeah, your major baffles me. Theater? The fuck you’re gonna do with that? At least I chose something sustainable.”

Ryan and Meg spent the better part of a half hour going back and forth. The two of them had moved to their college, about an hour outside of New York City, just a few months ago. Meg was always itching for a reason to go to the city while Ryan preferred to stay in, under covers.

Meg pulled her last straw. “You know what then? Friend date. You, me, the city, Friday after class.”

Ryan rolled his eyes. “You make a compelling argument, but I need a little more persuasion.”

“You pick food, I pick Other Cool Fun Thing to Do (trademark)” Meg offered, whispering “trademark” for added effect.

Ryan nodded and smiled, noting how she remembered his affinity for off campus food. “Deal.”

-

Meg was bouncing on her heels as they waited at the train station. Ryan held an umbrella over the two of them, wishing the rain would let up once they got off the train again. 

"I'm so excited!!" Meg nearly squealed, getting her weekly dose of off campus traveling. "I so rarely go to this part of the city. I can't wait!"

"Unfortunately, you were so excited we got here a whole half hour early," Ryan noted. "We could've been squeezing in another episode, but nooo, we had to walk across campus in the rain so early-"

"Oh, please, Rye. With that little tummy of yours, extra walking couldn't hurt," Meg teased.

"I'll have you know I pride myself of my college diet. Once summer hits, this'll be long gone. 'Til then, I'll gorge myself on pizza all day long."

As they were chatting, people nearby would often glance in their direction. Meg was so in her own world she didn't notice the stares, but with Ryan's wandering eye, he often caught them as they turned away. Trying not to cause a scene, he tuned back into what Meg was rambling on about.

"And then, during yoga, this fuckin' bitch..."

\---

After navigating subway lines and eating a most interesting meal of new types of sushi, they arrived at their venue. Meg had found a spoken poetry night downtown for them to check out. The venue was small with brick walls and folding chairs surrounding a small stage. One microphone was up there, waiting for someone to use it. A bar was right inside the entrance, thankfully stocked with Diet Coke for Ryan. The two of them found seats right near the front, ready to hear some poetry. The first few speakers were good enough for both their tastes, but there was one speaker neither of them could forget. 

“Uh, this next poem is called ‘Lost and Found’,” the speaker announced, “performed by Jon Risinger.”

A lanky looking teenager came on stage, paper in hand. He pushed his hair out of his face with his hands before he spoke.

Meg was fully attentive to listen to each word but Ryan couldn’t care less. He was more absorbed in Jon’s hair and the way it fell on his blue plaid button up shirt. Not to mention, since they were front row, how Ryan could catch how much shine were inside Jon’s sky blue eyes.

“That was such a powerful poem, wasn’t it, Ryan? Ryan? JAMES!”

Ryan jerked up to see Meg staring at him and to see another performer come on stage. He couldn’t tell you a single thing about the poem just read, and regretted every moment. He scanned the floor, hoping the kid was still around so he could say hello.

“I’m Jon, they, them, theirs,” they said, extending their hand out to shake.

“Ryan, he, him, his,” Ryan smiled, shaking their hand.

“And Meg! She/hers is fine,” Meg chimed in, bouncing in from the side.

Ryan chucked. “If it wasn’t for Meg, I certainly wouldn’t be here tonight. She dragged me out here to get a change of scenery.” Meg just rolled her eyes.

“Oh? That’s funny; I’m not normally out and about either. I had to do this for class. You’d never catch me performing any other night. I have a professor that likes to treat us like high schoolers so one of our assignments was to perform a piece at an open mic,” Jon admitted.

“She sounds wack.”

“This is the least of it. There was this time…”

"Before you continue," Meg butted in, "Do y'all want to find a cafe? There are other performers here tonight, y'know."

The three of them left the venue early and went across the street into a diner and picked up where the conversation left off. Ryan and Jon talked until Meg had to remind Ryan that they had a train to catch back to their campus, after hours of chatting. Jon blushed before apologizing and stood to leave. Meg asked if they would see them again, and it just deepened Jon’s blush.

“I mean, if you want to, I don’t have much going on, besides school and photography.”

“Photography?” Ryan inquired. “You haven’t mentioned it yet.”

“It’s a budding hobby at most, I’m not very good at it and I don’t even have a real camera, just my phone. It’s just something to get me out of my dorm at least once a week,” explained Jon.

“Well that’s convenient, Ryan doesn’t get out much either, so maybe we could all meet up again next weekend! We can walk around a park or something so you can get some pictures!” Meg suggested.

Ryan and Jon both nodded, unable to meet the other’s eye. They all parted ways, each with at least one brand new phone contact.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _THIS IS VERY MUCH A WORK IN PROGRESS SORRY FOR POOR QUALITY_
> 
> also sorry for so much dialogue ;0;
> 
> I admittedly forgot about the project until about a half week ago so I just needed to get something up here. I do have long term plans for this story but I won't be able to write much more until I'm out of school for the semester (May 11). After that, I'll have much more time and energy to devote myself to a chapter story. When I do again, though, I'll probs go to my usual weekly Friday postings. 
> 
> Keep up with me on my social medias to see any story updates or just to follow my shenanigans
> 
> My tumblr - hey-holy-roller.tumblr.com  
> My twitter - @hey_holyroller


	2. sometimes it's hard to see anything lovely

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title - Money and the Ego by Carly Rae Jepsen
> 
> (pLS DON'T JUDGE ME I USED TO LISTEN TO HER IN 10TH GRADE AND I FOUND HER FIRST ALBUM AGAIN TODAY)

Ryan could have sworn he heard knocking on his door, but he was far too sleep deprived to go and investigate. It was Friday night and after an especially difficult week of classes, he called 9pm his bedtime and was curled in his quilt.

After a few more knocks, he finally got up to see his roommate, Michael, talking with Meg. Meg seemed worried, talking with her hands more than usual to Michael. Michael looked vaguely stressed out but listened to Meg regardless. He turned to see Ryan come out from his room to see the commotion and stepped back to let Meg talk. 

“Ryan! Jon needs us.”

“Who’s Jon?” Michael turned to ask Ryan. “That’s the one thing confusing me most.” 

“A friend of ours,” Ryan answered. He invited Meg inside their room to sit for a moment but Meg shook her head no.

“We need to go, like, now,” she explained. “Their texts are concerning the shit out of me, they need a friend.”

“So, why do I have to come?” Ryan inquired. “You’re more of their friend than me, sure we text a few times a day but clearly you two are closer.”

“Ryan! Please, it’s nighttime and honestly, I don’t feel safe traveling alone. Plus, Jon’s been asking for you. Look.”

Sure enough, Jon was talking about Ryan as well, wishing the two of them were there. Ryan shook his head in disbelief and grabbed a backpack with a change of clothes and his laptop inside. Michael patted his back and wished them both well before turning around to go back and work on a paper. Ryan and Meg walked to their train station, praying no one else would really be around. Their campus had frequently sent emails about safety at this particular train station so Ryan understood Meg’s nervousness traveling at night. Between Jon’s apparent panic attack and Meg’s risk of safety, Ryan felt better about grabbing a cheap cup of campus coffee and riding into the city to support his friends. 

-

They got to their destination safely. Meg insisted on stopping for a quick moment in the train station to pick up some donuts before going to Jon’s college dorm room. Ryan carried a half dozen donuts and another cup of coffee while making sure Meg stayed safe on the subway. A few glances were all they had to deal with, which they deemed better than the horror stories on the news, so they considered it a good trip.

“Has Jon ever done this before? Like, ask us to come in?” Ryan asked when they were on their subway.

“No, that’s the thing that worries me most.”

“You know, we’ve only known Jon a couple weeks now. And now you’re willing to drop everything to come see them.”

“Yeah, ‘cause we’re good friends?”

Ryan chuckled. “Seems like a bit more than that.”

Meg’s face flushed. “What! What are you implying?”

“Nothing,” Ryan smiled, “Just seems like a schoolgirl crush. Beckoning to the call of distress.” Ryan flailed his hand to his forehead to be overdramatic while Meg shrugged it all off.

By the time they reached Jon, Jon had been able to calm down enough to come and sign them in for an overnighter. While their face wasn’t very blotchy from tears, their hair was in all directions and they were wearing tattered old pajamas that looked older than them. 

“Hey guys,” Jon said, hugging them both. “Thank you so, so, so much.”

“Jon, you don’t have to thank us,” Meg said, returning the hug. Ryan did the same, giving them the strongest hug he could while also beginning to doze off again. The three of them made their way up to the 8th story of the building, Jon’s floor. 

“Sorry my room is a mess...it’s just hard, y’know.”

Ryan empathized, explaining his room was probably no better. Jon smirked a little before letting them inside. Sure enough, clothes were everywhere, trash and water bottles were piling up, and papers were scattered between the desk, bed, and floor. Meg was surprised but Ryan didn’t bat an eye. 

“Sorry again,” Jon said, kicking things out of the way to make a path. “Hey, it’s a good thing I don’t have a roommate, right? They wouldn’t know what to do with me. Heh… Uh, can I offer either of you something to drink? Water, there’s a vending machine down the hall...I have a coffee maker?”

“Coffee, if you’re able,” Ryan requested, already beginning a plan. Meg took a bottle of water and encouraged Jon to sit and rest. She took care of Ryan’s third coffee of the night while Jon got back in bed. Ryan sipped on the bitter black coffee while slowly getting Jon’s clothes organized. He found an abandoned hamper and shoved clothes in it. All the while, Jon was talking things over with Meg, both of them seemingly forgetting Ryan was around. It wasn’t before Ryan interrupted that they remembered.

“Mind taking your clothes off?” Ryan asked Jon. 

“What?”

_“RYAN!”_

Ryan held his hand up to explain. “Change into the clothes in my bag. Your clothes need a good washing and you’ll feel better in something at least a little cleaner. Also, where is the laundry room on this floor?”

Jon’s eyes softened before getting up and changing behind the closet door. Ryan’s clothes were just too big for Jon but served as a good substitute while Ryan got their clothes clean. Ryan found detergent and made his way to the laundry room while Meg and Jon hashed out more stuff. 

“I truly can’t explain why I got so worked up so fast. One moment, I’m up on the roof trying to get new pictures of the city, the next I’m crying as I’m walking back to my room,” Jon explained. “I couldn’t get anything good and then my stomach started bubbling up and I had to leave before it got worse...but then it still got worse.”

“Oh my gosh, that sounds horrific.” Meg sighed. 

“It’s not fun, let me tell you. Usually I can put in headphones to help, like, ground me but even that wasn’t working. I just had to lay here and wait for it to pass, which just involved lots of crying. I also ended up drinking a lot of water to compensate, so I apologize in advance if I’m getting up a lot.”

Ryan came back and started picking up the papers that were all over the floor, putting them in a neat pile on their desk. At the same time, he organized the trash from belongings and would interrupt their conversation only to ask whether or not something could be thrown out. Ryan’s phone alarm went off, signaling that the clothes were ready for the dryer. 

“Do you have dryer sheets?” he asked. 

Jon pointed to his closet and Ryan grabbed a couple. By the time the laundry was completely done, it was approaching one in the morning. Jon and Meg put on some idle Netflix show to pass the time and wait for Ryan, while also letting Jon continue to calm down. Ryan set the laundry aside, then took out one last trash bag. From the time Ryan got there, Jon’s room turned from inhabitable to livable if not really clean. They could see the floor again and everything had a very new feeling to it. Ryan crawled into bed with his friends, Meg on the far side and Jon right next to him. 

“Thank you so much, both of you,” Jon said, giving each of them a side hug. “Thanks Meg for letting me talk and Ryan, I really can’t thank you enough for helping with the mess.”

They both expressed thanks before turning back to the show. Within minutes, Jon was nodding off, and ended up sleeping atop Ryan’s lap. Ryan was caught off guard, but wouldn’t budge for anything. A few moments passed before Meg even noticed, snapping a picture of the two of them. Just before Ryan was going to move just enough to get himself comfortable to sleep, Meg spoke up.

“How’d you know it’d help?” Meg asked.

“If what would help?”

“The cleaning. The laundry. Jon seems better than I’d imagine after such an attack. I wouldn’t have thought of that at all.” 

“Ah, well, they’re not the only one with depression,” Ryan answered, running his fingers through Jon’s hair. Jon smiled in their sleep and a spark made Ryan’s heart warm up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long~! From here on out I'm going to try for Friday/Saturday updates because I'm starting to get a better feel for where this story is going. I'll post on Tumblr or Twitter if it changes or something (or if I forget what day of the week it is that tends to happen to me over the summer).
> 
> Kudos/comments are always appreciated <3
> 
> My twitter - @hey_holyroller  
> My tumblr - hey-holy-roller


	3. we are the children of the great empire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter title - conquistador by 30 seconds to mars

Meg was a morning shower so she went down the hall to utilize Jon’s dorm’s bathrooms. They weren’t the best of conditions, but some of them were accessible to all genders, something Meg and Jon were thrilled about. While Meg showered, Ryan and Jon had a moment to chat.

“So, do they happen often?”

“Not like they used to be,” Jon explained, “I’m in between medication right now so it’s not a complete shock, though. Like five years ago? This was much more common.”

“I understand. Age has helped me with stuff, too. My anxiety has nearly vanished, but depression? Hey, you can’t win ‘em all.”

Jon chuckled and tried to move away from the inevitable heart-to-heart that was trying to form. “So, how long have you and Meg known each other?”

Ryan shrugged. “What’s it now, late November?” Ryan looked at his phone. “We met at the beginning of the school year, so a few months now.”

“Holy shit, really?” Jon sounded astonished.

“Yeah, why?”

“You two seem like lifelong pals! As if you’d known each other from like, grade school.”

Ryan laughed. “Nah, Meg and I probably wouldn’tv’e gotten along way back then. It’s a miracle now we get along, honestly. She’s so much more energetic than I am. Hell, last night I was half asleep when she came knocking on my door. That’s why I was drinking so much coffee.”

Jon smirked as Meg walked back in from her shower. “I love it here!” she cried, “No one batted an eye when I was in there! As if I was any other person! Ahh, the joys of gender inclusion!” 

Ryan and Jon chuckled, enjoying Meg’s enthusiasm. 

“Well, it’s Saturday, and I can’t speak for y’all but it’s my one day of the week where I blow off everything related to school and have a day of relaxation and such. Anyone want to go exploring?” Meg announced once she was dressed. 

“I’m down for it. Jon?” Ryan turned to see Jon nodding, smiling a little bit. Jon changed into clean clothes for the first time they could remember and gave Ryan his clothes back. The three of them headed out into the New York City streets to find some breakfast before trekking all over the concrete playground. Jon’s dorm room was on the same side of the street as a bagel place, so they went there to dine on some classic New York style bagels. 

“I didn’t realize before moving here that bagels were like, a big deal. But then one day, during a floor meeting, my RA brought some for us, and holy shit,” Jon explained. “It was incredible. I’ve been going here a few times a week since!”

“Where’d you say you were from again?” Meg asked.

“California, I figured it was time to get completely out of my comfort zone once and for all,” Jon explained. “And what better place to do that than the Big Apple?”

Ryan laughed at the city nickname. “I have to say, that’s an admirable move. I didn’t even go that far, comparatively.”

“Oh?”

“Georgia, and this one here’s from Texas,” Ryan said, pointing at Meg for the latter. 

Meg smiled and tipped an imaginary cowboy hat. “Yessir, Mr. Ryan,” Meg joked before explaining. “I’m from Austin, which is surprisingly not very Texas. I mean, it still has bomb ass barbecue and all that, but like no desert and less homophobia from what I’ve experienced.”

“Oh yeah, Texas plus queer stuff doesn’t always come out positive from what I’ve read.” Jon shrugged. “At least you’re here now, in the city!”

“Yeah! I don’t regret anything about where I went to school...well, aside from being in the city itself. But, I’m close by which is more than I’ve ever wished for,” Meg said, beaming as she got her bagel.

“Any reason you didn’t come into the city? You seem smart enough to be in any of the top schools here,” Jon said, finding a place for them to sit down. 

Meg blushed before answering, “Money, mainly. It’s amazing enough for me to be up here, but in the city itself, my family can’t afford it.”

“Same here,” Ryan chimed in, “I have a butt ton of half siblings and such that also want to go to college so it was enough for me to get enough scholarships to come up. If I hadn’t, I’d be in-state for sure.”

Jon was surprised to see their friends in a more sensitive light. Money was never an issue growing up so Jon had a free pass to go wherever they liked. They found the last table in the cafe and bummed an extra chair off a couple who didn’t need it. They dove into their bagels and drinks and fell in love with food. Once they were full enough to feel comfortable again, a new topic arose.

“Forgive me for perhaps being too direct and extremely rude, but Meg, can I...know your story? Like gender wise,” Jon asked, breaking the silence. “If you don’t want to discuss it, I totally understand, I’m just happy to know other trans people and-”

“Jon, you’re fine,” Meg said, putting her hand over theirs. “I’m happy to tell my story! Okay, so, I’m that cliche of ‘always knowing’, like my mom has pictures of me in her clothes from when I was 3 or 4. I started using the name Megan when I started school which, as you may imagine, threw my teachers in for a loop. My parents were nothing short of supportive, though, they even gave me the nickname Meg! With school they put me in a real nice private school that was kinda more progressive so I wouldn’t be as harassed. It helped some, I mean, I don’t know what it was like any other way but I think I made it out alright. Nothing other than traditional bullying because I was a fucking nerd, the trans stuff I got extremely lucky with. I took hormone blockers and then when I was like 15? Or was it 16...anyways, that’s when I began estrogen shots and all that.” Meg paused to sip on some coffee. “What about you, though? Of course, if you’re comfortable sharing.”

Jon chuckled at Meg’s quick, caffeine induced speech. “Oh, well my story isn’t as spectacular. My parents were pretty chill too, except for frequent label changes. For a while I thought I was a trans girl, then I thought I was maybe demigirl, but nothing ever really fit, so agender is really the only one that works for me at this point. Gender isn’t really my thing. Hey, it might change, but who knows?” 

“Right on! Labels are difficult. I still have _no_ idea what I identify as. I’m hoping to wake up one day and have it slap me in the face,” said Ryan. 

“Hey, that works, too! Do you mean gender wise, or sexuality wise?” Jon asked for clarification. 

“Sexuality, I’m chill as a dude. I don’t even know if my sexuality and romantic identity line up. That’s why I’m letting it sit on the back burner for now.”

“Smart man, Haywood,” Meg chimed in. “I’m done with my food, y’all ready to head out?”

The three of them took off to explore the city. They bought some subway passes and rode downtown to walk around first. Despite being nearly December, the air was still crisp like fall and the sun warmed them up to enjoy a good walk. The cool air on Jon’s face eased away puffy eyes; they even forgot that not even a day ago they felt like their world was slipping through their fingers. 

It was close to two in the afternoon when their tummies started being noisy again. Walking aimless around the city burned off the bagels and more, leaving them to find a new eatery all over again. It wasn’t long before they stumbled across a pop up ice cream store. The three of them looked at each other, nodded, and walked inside. 

“Holy shit.”

“Wow.”

“This is _heaven._ ”

The store was offering make-your-own ice cream bars, made with some of the world’s finest ice cream, chocolate, and toppings. The interior looked like it was a 5 star hotel for the world’s kings instead of essentially an ice cream store. People were lined up to get their creation, so the trio joined them and started to think about what they could make. They could choose from chocolate or vanilla ice cream, then choose what kind of chocolate to dip it in - white, milk, or dark - and then picking toppings that ranged from chocolate chips to raspberry sugar to even edible gold pieces. 

After about an hour of waiting, due to popularity and indecision, they had their ice cream. Ryan’s was vanilla with milk chocolate and loads of chocolate chips on top, Meg chose vanilla as well, but instead dipped in white chocolate and added edible rose petals and raspberry sugar, and Jon did chocolate, dipped in dark, and coated with coconut, edible gold, and cacao nibs. 

“This is the greatest day ever!” Jon exclaimed. “I feel as happy as…”

“A kid in an ice cream store?” Ryan teased. 

Meg rolled her eyes while Jon laughed and nodded. They weren’t lucky enough to find seats inside so they took back to the streets and made their way back uptown. Many pedestrians would ask them where they got their ice cream, only for Meg usually to explain that it was down the block. Before they knew it, they were back on the subway and were only left with their popsicle stick. 

Before calling it a day and having Meg and Ryan go back to their campus, they took a stroll through a park near Jon’s campus. The trees had long since lost their leaves and the grass was starting to lose its summer shine. Walking around the streets was one thing, but in parks, time seemed to slow down and the cars buzzing became background noise. The three of them walked side by side, with Jon in the middle once again.

“Today has been...perfect,” Jon said, “Thank you, so so so much.”

“Hey, it’s our pleasure,” Meg replied, “Sorry we didn’t eat, like, anything really substantial today.”

“Nah, that’s okay,” Jon shrugged. “I can grab a bite later in the dining hall.”

“We should do that when we get back on campus, eh Ryan?” Meg turned to meet Ryan’s eye, and he gave a small nod as his answer. Meg beamed and went back to walking alongside Jon. The three of them went back to enjoying the silence, as much as they could in a city at least. Despite the temperature starting to drop, their company and memories of the day kept them warm. 

Meg and Ryan got their belongings back from Jon’s dorm room and parted ways. Jon hugged both of them and thanked them again, promising to return the favor one day. As Meg and Ryan turned the corner of the hallway, they all instantly missed each other and hoped to see each other again soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> that ice cream place is real and beautiful and i need to go asap (it's called magnum dipping bar in soho and it's only there until august 7 i think)
> 
> also i'm tired so i didn't edit too much oops
> 
> anyways thank you for your support <3
> 
> my twitter - @hey_holyroller  
> my tumblr - hey-holy-roller


End file.
